--- title: What the Old Man Does Is Always Right — Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Andersen · full text with trees · page 2 description: What the Old Man Does Is Always Right, «Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Andersen» by H. C. Andersen: the whole chapter, every sentence with its dependency tree and pragmatics. It begins: I will tell you a story that was told me when I was a little boy. --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/page/2/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [tales](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/) / [Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Andersen](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/) / What the Old Man Does Is Always Right # What the Old Man Does Is Always Right · page 2 [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/) **2** - [101](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/101/) — Now we shall have plenty of milk, and butter, and cheese on the table. - [102](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/102/) — That was a capital exchange." - [103](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/103/) — "Yes, but I changed the cow for a sheep." - [104](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/104/) — "Ah, better still!" cried the wife. " - [105](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/105/) — You always think of everything; we have just enough pasture for a sheep. - [106](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/106/) — Ewe's milk and cheese, woollen jackets and stockings! - [107](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/107/) — The cow could not give all these, and her hair only falls off. - [108](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/108/) — How you think of everything!" - [109](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/109/) — "But I changed away the sheep for a goose." - [110](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/110/) — "Then we shall have roast goose to eat this year. - [111](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/111/) — You dear old man, you are always thinking of something to please me. - [112](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/112/) — This is delightful. - [113](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/113/) — We can let the goose walk about with a string tied to her leg, so she will be fatter still before we roast her." - [114](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/114/) — "But I gave away the goose for a fowl." - [115](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/115/) — "A fowl! - [116](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/116/) — Well, that was a good exchange," replied the woman. " - [117](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/117/) — The fowl will lay eggs and hatch them, and we shall have chickens; we shall soon have a poultry-yard. - [118](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/118/) — Oh, this is just what I was wishing for." - [119](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/119/) — "Yes, but I exchanged the fowl for a sack of shrivelled apples." - [120](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/120/) — "What! - [121](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/121/) — I really must give you a kiss for that!" exclaimed the wife. " - [122](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/122/) — My dear, good husband, now I'll tell you something. - [123](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/123/) — Do you know, almost as soon as you left me this morning, I began to think of what I could give you nice for supper this evening, and then I thought of fried eggs and bacon, with sweet herbs; I had eggs and bacon, but I wanted the herbs; so I went over to the schoolmaster's: I knew they had plenty of herbs, but the schoolmistress is very mean, although she can smile so sweetly. - [124](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/124/) — I begged her to lend me a handful of herbs. ' - [125](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/125/) — Lend!' she exclaimed, 'I have nothing to lend; nothing at all grows in our garden, not even a shrivelled apple; I could not even lend you a shrivelled apple, my dear woman. - [126](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/126/) — But now I can lend her ten, or a whole sackful, which I'm very glad of; it makes me laugh to think about it;" and then she gave him a hearty kiss. - [127](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/127/) — "Well, I like all this," said both the Englishmen; "always going down the hill, and yet always merry; it's worth the money to see it." - [128](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/128/) — So they paid a hundred-weight of gold to the peasant, who, whatever he did, was not scolded but kissed. - [129](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/129/) — Yes, it always pays best when the wife sees and maintains that her husband knows best, and whatever he does is right. - [130](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/130/) — That is a story which I heard when I was a child; and now you have heard it too, and know that "What the old man does is always right." [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/132/) **2** - ← previous: [The Old House](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/131/) - next →: [The Old Street Lamp](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/133/) - ↑ back to [Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Andersen](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/)